Hubballi, Feb 28 (PTI) Flown in at a moment’s notice to replace the injured Shubham Khajuria, Qamran Iqbal’s century in the Ranji Trophy final was as breathless as it was brilliant.
Overcoming fatigue after a last-minute flight to Hubballi, Iqbal notched a career-defining 160 not out to help Jammu and Kashmir seal their maiden title in the country’s premier domestic tournament.
Iqbal was resting at his Srinagar home, having not been part of the original squad, when he received a call to join the team immediately.
The stylish opener received the call from team management at 3 pm on February 23, triggering a race against time to join the squad before the scheduled start of play at 9 am the next day.
“Shubham Khajuria was injured and I got a call from the team management. I took an evening flight and reached here at 8 in the morning,” he said.
Iqbal’s jet lag was evident in his batting in the first innings against Karnataka as he was out for just six runs. He, however, made it count in the second essay by scoring a magnificent century before the two captains decided to shake hands and end the proceedings.
On his performance, the batter said he was practising a lot and playing matches prior to his selection in the state team.
“It was both confidence and tactics because it was a new ball on day one,” he said.
Jammu and Kashmir etched their name in the history books by clinching their maiden Ranji Trophy title on the basis of a first-innings lead, after the final against Karnataka ended in a draw.
Iqbal thanked everyone who was part of the journey.
“Congrats to JKCA. I will start with JKCA adminstration. Mithun (Manhas) sir was also there, Ajay (coach Sharma) sir, Majid sir. We went through a lot of practice in the pre-season, We were sent outside to play.
“Rajesh sir is so focused for the team and doesn’t take anything lightly. This is a result of that,” he added.
Iqbal was all praise for senior players, saying the team environment was very healthy and lively.
“Senior players like Paras, Shubham keep the team environment great, Aqib is bowling express pace. Everyone has put in their efforts for the team and everyone has contributed,” he said.
On future plans, he said the team was focussed on one match at a time.
“Today, we will celebrate and then let’s see what happens in the future,” he said. PTI MIJ MIJ AH AH
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